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Javier Baez belted his 18th home run of the season on Monday night against the Reds.

Baez finished the game 2-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBI, after going 2-for-4 with a homer, two runs scored, and three RBI in Sunday's series finale against the Diamondbacks. The 24-year-old infielder has been scorching hot in August. Aug 15 - 12:13 AM

Javier Baez went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run and two runs scored in Sunday's win over the Diamondbacks.

Baez socked a three-run home run in the eighth inning to give the Cubs some breathing room from what had been a tight 2-1 game. The 24-year-old infielder is working to a .270/.310/.491 triple-slash with 17 homers and 52 RBI for the season as a whole. Aug 13 - 8:12 PM

Javier Baez hit homer No. 16, an inside-the-park shot off the wall in right-center, in the win over the Giants on Monday.

The blast would have left a lot of yards, but not AT&T Park. Still, it eluded Carlos Moncrief for long enough to Baez to race around and barely beat the throw home. Baez has three homers in six games this month, all of them coming with men on (two two-run homers, one three-run shot). He's hitting .359 with six homers in the second half, raising his OPS from .745 to .804. He should be an everyday player while Addison Russell is out. Aug 8 - 1:20 AM

Javier Baez belted a two-run homer in Friday's loss to the Nationals.

Baez drills a long one into the left-center field bleachers off of Tanner Roark in the seventh inning to cut the Cubs' deficit to one, but they wouldn't get any closer. He's in line to see regular starts at shortstop while Addison Russell (foot) is sidelined. Aug 4 - 5:18 PM

Depth Charts

Cubs placed C Willson Contreras on the 10-day disabled list with a right hamstring strain.

He's expected to be sidelined for the next 4-to-6 weeks with the injury, but the Cubs remain optimistic that he'll return to see meaningful action in September. Alex Avila will handle the bulk of the catching for the Cubs while Victor Caratini has been recalled from Triple-A to add depth behind the plate.

Addison Russell (foot) jogged on the field and hit in the batting cages on Tuesday.

"I'm feeling a little bit better," Russell said after the light workout. "I'm trying to take this slow. I don't want any setbacks." The young shortstop has acknowledged that he is experiencing symptoms of plantar fasciitis in his right foot and there is currently no timetable for his return to the Cubs' active roster. Russell landed on the disabled list August 4.

This comes after Lester exited Thursday's start with lat tightness. The left-hander was blown up for nine runs in that start and didn't throw with his usual velocity. The Cubs aren't expected to update Lester's status until Friday at the earliest, though it's a near certainty that he'll be placed on the disabled list. Mike Montgomery, who logged 4 1/3 innings out of the bullpen on Thursday, is an obvious candidate to replace Lester in the starting rotation.

It was his first pen session since landing on the disabled list last week and he'll throw another one on Saturday. The 42-year-old has delivered a 3.55 ERA over 43 relief outings in his first year with Chicago.